Automatic windmill-regulator.



c.' c. PETERSON.. AUTUMATIG WINDMILL REGULATOR.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 1909.

Patented Nov.`30, 1909.

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CARL C. PETERSON, 0F SHERIDAN TOWNSHIP, WASHINGTON COUNTY, NEBRASKA.

AUTOMATIC WINDIVIILL-REGULATOR.

Specification ofLetters Patent.

Patented Nov. 30, 1909.

Application led May 4, y1909. Serial No. 493,921.

My invention relates to improvements in regulators, controlled by a weighted float on a water supply, to throw the .windmill in or out of wind or gear to maintain the water supply at a predetermined height; and the objects of my improvement are, first, to eliminate lost motion in a regulator actuated by the vertically reciprocating impulses of the millv pump-rod; second, to providea regulator that is automatically disconnected with said mill pump-rod the instant the wheel is out of wind or out of gear; and, third, a regulator that when tripped by the descending float on the depleted water supply will allow the mill to turn entirely into wind or gear without a hitch or interruption in the movement. I attain these objects by the mechanism illustrated in the accompanying drawing, in which- Figure 1 is a perspective view ofthe regulator attached to a windmill tower frame, connected to the mill-gear controlling line and to the controlling ioat; Fig. 2, a side elevation of the regulator showing the positions of the members of the regulator when the mill is retained out of gear and about to release the gear-line; and Fig. 3, is an enlarged vertical section of the spring device to control the grip ing check-pawl 14.

Similar numerals re er to similar parts throughout the several views.

A horizontally disposed angle-bar, consisting ofthe vertical upstanding flange 6 and the horizontal ange 7, serves as the head of a supporting frame or bracket. The inclined brace 8 is disposed beneath and one end riveted to the projecting end of said head. The opposite or free ends of head and l brace are pivoted to the horizontal lianges of the short angle-irons 4 and 5 so that the supporting bracket will swing in a horizontal plane. And the angle-irons 4 and 5 are fastened to the leg of the tower 2 ash- 1 by the clips 38 to support the regulator in the desired position relative to the connected parts of the windmill, pump and water tank.

A smooth pawl-rod 24 is disposed vertically and loosely through guide perforations` in the flange 7 and lbrace 8 of the bracket. The top end of this rod is shaped to form the eye 25 into which is fastened the lower end of the line 26 by which the wind Wheel is turned out of the wind or the mill out of gear.

A gripping pawl 14 is made of a flat bar of metal; it is pivotally fastened at one end by the round headed bolt 18 disposed through it and the level flange 7, as shown; toward the opposite end the bar is perforated to loosely receive the pawl-rod when pawl and rod are at right angles to each other. A coil spring 15 is disposed between the pawl and flange 7 to throw the free end of the pawl upward to an oblique angle to the rod where the edges of the pawl within the perforation cramp against and clutch the rod to prevent its ascent. The spring 15 is disposed around the pawl-rod and is seated on the shouldered washer 16 through which the rod slides loosely and which prevents the lower end of the spring Afrom wedging in around the rod where it passes through the flange 7; the spring is capped by a similar washer 17 having a rounded trp to act against the pawl at dilferent anes. g On a horizontal stud-journal 22 disposed Ion the outer end of the swinging brackethead the lever 23 is mounted to oscillate in a vertical plane. Thel vertical connecting rod 20 has its lower end bent and journaled ,in the inner end of the lever. The top end of said connecting rod is bent to form a hook to engage and carry the base of the gripping pawl 19, of construction and operation like the pawl 14. On the hook beneath the pawl and between the pawl and the point of the hook the spring 21 is disposed to normally retain the pawl at a clutching angle on the pawl-rod to draw said rod down when the inner end of the lever descends.

A cable 36, havin the interposed coil spring 37, has one end astened to the lever 23 and the opposite end disposed obliquely forward and downward so that the resilience of the drawn out spring turns the supporting bracket to swing the-lever 23 against the pump-rod 28 and draws the outer end of the lever downward against the bracket-lug 29 on the pump-rod. The float 33 is connected by the cable 30 running over the pulley 31 to the lever 23'to swing the bracket and draw the lever away from the pump-rod to the position indicated by the broken lines 32 when said float falls to the position indicated at 34, in Fig. 1, by a depletion of the water in the tank 35.

A pallet 13 is mounted at one end on the stud-journal 12 so that its opposite or swinging end overlaps the clutch end of the pawl 14 to depress said pawl against the action of the spring 15 and out of engagement with the pawl-rod, as shown in Fig. 2. The pallet has at one side the downwardly projecting arm 9 in the lower end of which is pivoted one end of the connecting-rod 10 the opposite or threaded end of which is passed loosely through a perforation in the vertical ange of the extended end of the angle-iron 4 and provided with the nut 11, at the back of the flange, by whichthe length of said connecting-rod is varied to adjust the action of the pallet. Vhen the supporting bracket is swung away from the stationarily retained end of' the connectingrod 10 by the falling float drawing the lever 23 away from the pump-rod, the distance between the liXed support of the connectingrod and the base of the arm is increased, 1n effect drawing back on the arm and swinging the pallet down to release the pawl 14. This releases the pawl-rod and allows it to ascend carrying with it the actuating-pawl 19 and elevatin the inner end of the lever.

A pawl trip 27 consists of a vertical rod having at its lower end a horizontal loop disposed loosely around the pawl-rod below the level flange of the bracket-head and the upper end having a like loop around the pawl-rod above the actuating-pawl. This trip ascends with the actuating-pawl until its lower loop strikes the underside of the bracket-head which arrests its upward lnovement and depresses the clutching end of said pawl against the action of the spring 21 and thus out of clutch with the pawl-rod. This leaves the pawl-rod entirely free to slide upward and releases the windwheel allowing it to turn into the wind for pumping.

The wheel or gear controlling line 26 is made of such length that when the mill is out of gear the actuating-pawl, connectingrod 20 and the inner end of the lever 23 are held depressed by the projecting head of the Apawl-rod and the outer end of said lever elevated entirely above the range of movement of the lug 29 on the pump-rod, as shown in Fig. 2. This makes a complete disconnection of the mill from the regulator so that if erratic currents of wind turn the wheel no breakage of the regulator or connected parts will occur.

I claim:

1. A windmill regulator comprising a horizontally-swinging support, a verticallymovable pawl-rod guided by said support, a check pawl, a vertically oscillating level' pivoted on said support, a connecting-rod pivoted to said lever, an actuating-pawl mounted on said connecting-rod, a lug on the vertically reciprocating pump rod, means tending to normally swing said support to bring said lever into the path of said lug, and a float connected to swing said support to carry said lever away from the path of said lug when the water supply is depleted.

2. A windmill regulator comprising a horizontally-swinging bracket, a verticallymovable pawl-rod guided by said bracket, a check-pawl on said bracket, a vertically-oscillating lever fulcrumed on said bracket, a connecting-rod pivoted to said lever, an actuating-pawly mounted on said connectingrod, a pallet journaled on the bracket to engage said check-pawl, a connecting-rod pivotally connected toV said pallet and to the stationary support carrying said swinging bracket to actuate said pallet when the bracket swings.

3. A windmill regulator comprising a horizontal support, a vertically-movable pawl-rod disposed through said support, a vertically reciprocating actuating pawl above said support, a pawl-trip having a lower loop disposed around said pawl-rod below said support and a top loop disposed around said pawl-rod above said actuatingpawl to arrest the ascent of said pawl to trip it out of clutch with said pawl-rod.

4. A windmill regulator comprising a longitudinally recprocable pawl rod, a check-pawl to engage said pawl-rod, an oscillating lever, a longitudinally-reciprocable pump-rod, a. lug on the pump-rod to engage and actuate said lever in one direction only, a connecting-rod pivoted on said lever, an actuating-pawl mounted on said connectingrod to engage said pawl-rod, and an enlargement on said pawl-rod to engage said actuating-pawl and retain said lever beyond the reach of movement of said lug.

5. A windmill regulator comprising a support having a perforation, a plate hinged to said support-and having a perforation, a longitudinally reciprocable pawl rod disposed through said perforations, an annularly shouldered or rabbeted washer loosely mounted on said pawl-rod between said support and said plate, and a coil spring disposed around said pavvl-rod and having one end seated in said rabbet.

6. In a Windmill regulator the combination of a gripping actuating-pavvl having a perforation, a paWl-rod disposed loosely through said perforation, a lever, a connecting-rod one end pivoted to said lever the opposite end bent to form a hook to carry the base of said paWl, and a spring on the 10 hook to retain said paWl in releasable gripping position on sald paWl-rod.

In testimony whereof I afIiX my signature in presence of two Witnesses.

CARL C. PETERSON. Witnesses:

F. S. BAKER, MARION O. WILLsoN. 

